EP2939241B1 - Hybrid ternary content addressable memory - Google Patents

Hybrid ternary content addressable memory Download PDF

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Publication number
EP2939241B1
EP2939241B1 EP13818159.9A EP13818159A EP2939241B1 EP 2939241 B1 EP2939241 B1 EP 2939241B1 EP 13818159 A EP13818159 A EP 13818159A EP 2939241 B1 EP2939241 B1 EP 2939241B1
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EP
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Prior art keywords
tcam
mask
key
stage
match
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German (de)
English (en)
French (fr)
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EP2939241A1 (en
Inventor
Rakesh VATTIKONDA
Nishith Desai
Changho Jung
Sei Seung Yoon
Esin Terzioglu
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Qualcomm Inc
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Qualcomm Inc
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    • G—PHYSICS
    • G11—INFORMATION STORAGE
    • G11C—STATIC STORES
    • G11C15/00—Digital stores in which information comprising one or more characteristic parts is written into the store and in which information is read-out by searching for one or more of these characteristic parts, i.e. associative or content-addressed stores
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G11—INFORMATION STORAGE
    • G11C—STATIC STORES
    • G11C15/00—Digital stores in which information comprising one or more characteristic parts is written into the store and in which information is read-out by searching for one or more of these characteristic parts, i.e. associative or content-addressed stores
    • G11C15/04—Digital stores in which information comprising one or more characteristic parts is written into the store and in which information is read-out by searching for one or more of these characteristic parts, i.e. associative or content-addressed stores using semiconductor elements

Definitions

  • the present disclosure relates generally to a ternary content addressable memory (TCAM). More specifically, the disclosure relates to a hybrid architecture for a TCAM.
  • TCAM ternary content addressable memory
  • TCAMs are typically used in routers and Ethernet switches for Internet protocol (IP) address forwarding.
  • IP Internet protocol
  • the storage elements are typically designed using a dynamic NOR/NAND type cell.
  • Content addressable memory supports a read operation, write operation, and compare operation.
  • a compare bus of the same width (e.g., bits per word) as an entry in the CAM is input at a clock edge.
  • the data of the compare bus is simultaneously compared to every entry in the CAM. That is, the comparison occurs parallel so the bus may be compared to every entry in the CAM during one clock cycle.
  • An entry is a match when every bit in an entry matches the corresponding bit in the compare bus.
  • an entry is a mismatch when any bit in an entry does not match the corresponding bit in the compare bus.
  • the bits of the entries in the CAM are either 0 or 1.
  • a TCAM is similar to CAM with the addition of a mask value that may be stored in a cell.
  • the mask value may be referred to as a local mask.
  • a mask value is not compared with a compare bit, and therefore, the compare result will always be a match.
  • FIGURE 1 illustrates an architecture of a conventional TCAM 100.
  • a search word such as "1101," is input to a register 150 of the TCAM 100.
  • the search word is compared to the value stored in the TCAM cells 110.
  • TCAMs typically have sixteen TCAM cells per stage.
  • the search is simultaneously conducted across the TCAM cells 110.
  • the content of the TCAM cells 110 may be a high bit (1), a low bit (0), or a mask value (X).
  • a match line 130-136 for each set of TCAM cells 120-126 is set to high.
  • the match lines 130-136 are input to a priority encoder 140.
  • the TCAM 100 outputs (MLout) the address of the set of TCAM cells that match the search word line. Because the search is a parallel search, the search may be completed in one clock cycle.
  • a mask value may be a 0 or 1, still, in the present disclosure, the mask value may be referred to as an X.
  • a first set of TCAM cells 120 is set to "1 X 0 1”
  • a second set of TCAM cells 122 is set to “1 0 X 1”
  • a third set of TCAM cells 124 is set to " 1 1 X X”
  • a fourth set of TCAM cells 126 is set to "1 X 1 X.”
  • the first set of TCAM cells 120 and the third set of TCAM cells 124 match the search word in the register 150. Accordingly, the match lines 130 134 of the first set of TCAM cells 120 and the third set of TCAM cells 124 will indicate a match and the priority encoder 140 outputs the address of the first set of TCAM cells 120 and the third set of TCAM cells 124.
  • the conventional TCAM architecture is a dynamic circuit and has a high dynamic power dissipation.
  • the TCAM may have a dynamic NAND architecture.
  • the TCAM may have a dynamic NOR architecture.
  • FIGURE 2 illustrates a conventional dynamic NAND TCAM 200.
  • the dynamic NAND architecture 200 includes a match line ML NAND charged by a pre-charge line PRE# from a pull-up transistor 210.
  • the match line ML NAND is connected to a series of intermediate match lines ML 0 - ML n-1 .
  • Each of the intermediate match lines ML 0 - ML n-1 is coupled to a mask cell Mask 0 - Mask n-1 and a key cell Key 0 - Key n-1 via a transmission gate.
  • the transmission gate includes a key NMOS transistor 202 coupled to a key cell Key 0 - Key n-1 and a mask NMOS transistor 204 coupled to a mask cell Mask 0 - Mask n-1 .
  • mask cells Mask 0 - Mask n-1 are SRAM cells including a mask value M, a mask value bar M#, a mask word line WLM, a mask bit line BLM, and a mask bit line bar BLM#.
  • the content of the key cells Key 0 - Key n-1 is illustrated in an expanded key cell 220. As shown in the expanded key cell 220, the key cells Key 0 - Key n-1 are SRAM cells with XNOR logic.
  • the key cells Key 0 - Key n-1 further include a search line SL, a search line bar SL#, a key bit line BLK, a key bit line bar BLK#, a key value K, a key bar value K#, and a key write line WLK.
  • the match lines are pre-charged high and evaluate low to indicate a match. That is, a pre-charge signal is used for each match line during every cycle to set the match lines to high. Depending on the status of the mask cell or key cell, the match line may be pulled low or remain high.
  • Each intermediate match line is associated with a mask cell and a key cell. Furthermore, each key cell further includes XNOR logic.
  • the dynamic NAND TCAM uses a serial operation. Thus, an intermediate match line (n-1) may discharge when the previous intermediate match line (n-2) is pulled low to indicate a match. That is, the operation continues from one intermediate match line (n-2) to a subsequent intermediate match line (n-1) when there is a match and stops progressing through the intermediate match lines when there is a mismatch.
  • match lines are pre-charged high and evaluate low to indicate a mismatch.
  • the majority of comparisons yield a mismatch, and therefore, the dynamic NOR has an increased power consumption as a result of switching from high to low for indicating a mismatch.
  • the dynamic NOR has a complex timing control because the pre-charge signal is used by each match line in each clock cycle.
  • FIGURE 3 illustrates a conventional dynamic NOR TCAM 300.
  • the dynamic NOR TCAM 300 includes key cells Key 0 - Key n-1 and mask cells Mask 0 - Mask n-1 .
  • a NOR TCAM such as the NOR TCAM 300 of FIGURE 3 , may have sixteen key and mask cells.
  • Data is input via search lines (SL 0 - SL n-1 and SL 0 # - SL n-1 #). The data is compared to the values stored in the key cells Key 0 -Key n-1 and mask cells Mask 0 -Mask n-1 .
  • the match line ML NOR is pre-charged high via the pre-charge line PRE# from a pull-up transistor 303.
  • the match line ML NOR will evaluate low when there is a mismatch between the data input via one of the search lines (SL 0 - SL n-1 and SL 0 # - SL n-1 #) and the data stored in one of the cells Key 0 - Key n-1 Mask 0 - Mask n-1 .
  • the match line remains high when the values of all of the cells Key 0 -Key n-1 Mask 0 - Mask n-1 match the input data.
  • the structure of the key cells Key 0 - Key n-1 is illustrated in the expanded key cell 330 and the structure of the mask cells Mask 0 - Mask n-1 is illustrated in the expanded mask cell 333.
  • the key cells Key 0 - Key n-1 are implemented via an SRAM cell.
  • the key bar K# is ANDed with the search line SL.
  • the key cells Key 0 - Key n-1 include a bit line BLK, a bit line bar BLK#, and a word line WLK.
  • the mask cells Mask 0 -Mask n-1 are implemented via a SRAM cell.
  • the mask bar M# is ANDed with the search line bar SL#.
  • the mask cells Mask 0 -Mask n-1 include a bit line BLM, a bit line bar BLM#, and a word line WLM.
  • match lines are pre-charged high at the beginning of every cycle and the match lines evaluate low to indicate a mismatch.
  • the majority of comparisons of the cells in a TCAM yield a mismatch.
  • the power consumption of the dynamic NOR TCAM is increased as a result of the switching from high to low when indicating a mismatch.
  • match lines may be pre-discharged low to reduce the power consumption.
  • a pre-charge operation charges the match line at the beginning of every cycle. Accordingly, the pre-charging of the match line leads to an increase in power consumption and additionally control circuitry.
  • a content-addressable memory comprises a first CAM cell and a second CAM cell.
  • the first CAM cell stores a first data bit, and compares the first data bit with a first search bit to determine if they are matched.
  • the second CAM cell stores a second data bit, and compares the second data bit with a second search bit to determine if they are matched.
  • the first CAM cell comprises a first logic circuit
  • the second CAM cell comprises a second logic circuit
  • the first logic circuit and the second logic circuit form a static CMOS logic circuit.
  • a hybrid TCAM includes a first TCAM stage configured to compare a first portion of a search word to a first portion of a stored word.
  • the TCAM also includes a second TCAM stage configured to compare a second portion of the search word to a second portion of the stored word when the first portion of the search word matches the first portion of the stored word.
  • the first TCAM stage is different from the second TCAM stage.
  • a hybrid TCAM includes a first means for comparing a first portion of a search word to a first portion of a stored word.
  • the hybrid TCAM further includes a second means for comparing a second portion of the search word to a second portion of the stored word when the first portion of the search word matches the first portion of the stored word.
  • the first means for comparing is different from the second means for comparing
  • TCAM that has low power consumption with high performance.
  • a TCAM that uses a combination of a static NAND and pseudo-NOR may be referred to as a hybrid TCAM.
  • the static NAND TCAM storage element may be referred to as a static NAND TCAM and the pseudo-NOR TCAM storage element may be referred to as a pseudo-NOR TCAM.
  • the pseudo-NOR TCAM does not use a complex timing control circuitry for a match line pre-charge because the match line (ML) is not pre-charged before each cycle.
  • the pseudo-NOR TCAM uses a pseudo NMOS gate that uses a PMOS transistor stack as a pull-up device and an NMOS transistor as a pull-down device.
  • the pseudo NMOS gate may be referred to as the pseudo-NOR gate.
  • each TCAM entry (stored in a TCAM row) may comprise n x m values stored by n x m cells.
  • Each cell includes a mask cell and a key cell as described further below.
  • the match line input (Match-in) is the match line output (Match-out) of a previous NOR pull down network (e.g., pseudo-NOR). That is, the match line input to a pseudo-NOR (pseudo-NOR TCAM stage 400B) is coupled to the match line output of a previous NOR stage (pseudo-NOR TCAM stage 400A).
  • the match line output Match-out m-2 of a pseudo-NOR TCAM stage 400A is the match line input Match-in m-1 of a subsequent pseudo-NOR TCAM stage 400B.
  • the architecture of the pseudo-NOR TCAM stages 400A and 400B of FIGURE 4 is similar.
  • the pseudo-NOR TCAM stage 400B also includes a NOR pull down network 410B, pull-down transistor 435B, a PMOS stack 414B, and an inverter 440B.
  • each pseudo-NOR e.g., 400A and 400B
  • the TCAM stages may be connected serially to form a row of m TCAM stages (0...m-1).
  • Each TCAM stage comprises n (0... n-1) search lines, key cells, and mask cells.
  • the search line inputs for each pseudo-NOR (e.g., 400A and 400B) of FIGURE 4 are exemplary inputs for the multiple search lines of a TCAM. It should be noted that in some aspects, the number of search lines, key cells, and mask cells may vary between each TCAM stage. That is, the n value for the (0...
  • n-1) search lines, key cells, and mask cells of one TCAM stage may not be the same as the n value for the (0... n-1) search lines, key cells, and mask cells of another TCAM stage, such as pseudo-NOR TCAM stage 400B.
  • the serial connection to the PMOS stack of the NOR pull down networks is a component of a pseudo-NOR that replaces the pre-charge and/or the pre-discharge of a conventional dynamic NOR.
  • the pseudo-NOR provides higher speeds and a lower transistor count in comparison to a conventional NOR architecture of a TCAM. Still, the pseudo-NOR has a static power consumption because of the pull-up transistor (PMOS stack) and has a reduced output voltage swing. Nonetheless, the overall speed improvement of the pseudo-NOR is still desirable in view of the increase of static-power consumption. It should be noted that the pull-up transistor(s) of the pseudo-NOR should be wide enough to conduct leakage of a NMOS-block and narrow enough for the NMOS-block to safely pull down the output.
  • FIGURE 5 illustrates an exemplary pseudo-NOR TCAM stage 500 according to aspects of the present disclosure.
  • the pseudo-NOR TCAM stage 500 is an expanded view of a pseudo-NOR stage, such as pseudo-NOR TCAM stages 400A and 400B of FIGURE 4 .
  • the pseudo-NOR TCAM stage 500 includes an inverter 540 coupled to a match line output Match-out m-1 , a PMOS stack 514 coupled to a match line input Match-in m-1 , and a pull-down transistor 535 coupled to a match line input Match-in m-1 , and a NOR pull down network 510.
  • the NOR pull down network 510 includes key cells Key 0 - Key n-1 and mask cells Mask 0 - Mask n-1 . Exemplary structures of the key cells and mask cells are illustrated in more detail in the expanded key cell 550 and expanded mask cell 555.
  • data is presented via search lines (SL 0 - SL n-1 and SL 0 #-SL n-1 #).
  • the data is compared to the values stored in the key cells Key 0 - Key n-1 and mask cells Mask 0 - Mask n-1 .
  • the key cells Key 0 - Key n-1 can be implemented with an SRAM cell.
  • the key bar K# is logically ANDed with the search line SL.
  • the key cells Key 0 - Key n-1 include bit lines BL BL# and a key word line WLK.
  • the mask cells Mask 0 - Mask n-1 can be implemented via an SRAM cell.
  • the mask bar M# is logically ANDed with the search line bar SL#.
  • the mask cells Mask 0 - Mask n-1 include bit lines BL BL# and a mask word line WLM. That is, the mask cells Mask 0 - Mask n-1 and key cells Key 0 - Key n-1 may each share respective bit lines but may use their own word lines, i.e., different wordlines.
  • the pseudo-NOR TCAM stage 500 further includes an input stage 560 coupled to the match line bar Match-out m-1 #.
  • the input stage 560 receives an input Match-in m-1 from a match line output Match-out m-2 of a previous pseudo-NOR stage.
  • the input stage 560 can include a pull-down transistor 535 and a PMOS stack 514.
  • pseudo-NOR functionality specifies the use of the input stage 560 and the NOR pull down network 510.
  • an inverter 540 is coupled to the end of the match line bar Match-out m-1 #. The output from the inverter 540 is the match line output Match-out m-1 .
  • TABLE 1 is a truth table for the masking bit and key bit. It should be noted that the state in TABLE 1 refers to the state of a storage element (key cell and mask cell). The state is 0 when the key bit has a value of 0 and the mask bit has a value of 1, the state is 1 when the key bit has a value of 1 and the mask bit has a value of 0, and the state is X when both the mask bit and the key bit are 1.
  • the state of X refers to a mask state in which there is neither a match nor a mismatch, rather, there is no comparison between the value of the search line and the values of the mask cell and key cell. Thus, the match line always indicates a match when the state is X.
  • M State Mask Bit
  • K Key Bit
  • TABLE 2 is a truth table for the pseudo-NOR and uses the state values of TABLE 1.
  • TABLE 2 Match-in m-1 State SL n-1 SL n-1 # Match-out m-1 1 1/0/X X X 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 X X 0 0
  • the match line output Match-out m-1 will be 0 (low) to indicate a match. A match occurs when the values of the state and search line SL n-1 are equal. Furthermore, when the state is X, the match line output Match-out m-1 will also be low to indicate a match. Finally, the match line output Match-out m-1 will be 1 (high) to indicate a mismatch. A mismatch occurs when the value of the state is not equal to the value of the search line SL n-1 .
  • the match line output Match-out m-1 of TABLE 2 is the output of the inverter 540 of the pseudo-NOR TCAM stage 500.
  • a match line bar Match-out m-1 # precedes inverter 540.
  • the match line bar Match-out m-1 # will evaluate low when there is a mismatch. That is, in order to disable further comparisons of the serially connected pseudo-NORs (e.g., 400A and 400B), the input stage 560 of a subsequent pseudo-NOR is specified to receive a high input that will activate the pull-down transistor 535 to pull the match line bar Match-out m-1 # of a subsequent pseudo-NOR to low.
  • the inverter 540 will change the match line bar Match-out m-1 # from a low signal to a high signal in order to disable a subsequent pseudo-NOR.
  • TABLE 2 further shows the results of receiving a match line input Match-in m-1 that is set to high. As shown in TABLE 2, when the match line input Match-in m-1 is high, the state is 1/0/X because there will be no evaluations. Furthermore, the match line output Match-out m-1 will also be high to disable a subsequent pseudo-NOR 400.
  • the match line input is low
  • the PMOS stack 514 is activated and the match line bar Match-out m-1 # is evaluated high. If all the comparison results match, then the match line bar Match-out m-1 # will remain high and the match line output Match-out m-1 will be low. If the comparison results in a mismatch, the match line bar Match-out m-1 # will evaluate low and the match line output Match-out m-1 will be high to disable a subsequent pseudo-NOR.
  • the disabling of a pseudo-NOR reduces the overall power consumption of the TCAM because the subsequent comparisons are disabled when there is a mismatch. That is, unlike the dynamic NOR that pre-charges match lines and search lines for each NOR pull down network regardless of the comparison results of the previous comparison, the pseudo-NOR only proceeds with subsequent comparisons when the previous comparison resulted in a match. Moreover, the pseudo-NOR does not pre-charge match lines and search lines. Accordingly, aspects of the present disclosure reduce the overall power consumption of the TCAM and further reduce the complexity of the control circuitry and timing.
  • FIGURE 6 illustrates an architecture of a static NAND TCAM 600 according to an aspect of the present disclosure.
  • a match line output ML NAND is connected to a series of intermediate match lines ML 0 - ML n-1 .
  • Each of the intermediate match lines ML 0 - ML n-1 is coupled to a mask cell Mask 0 -Mask n-1 via a first pull-down transistor, such as mask NMOS transistor 604, and a key cell Key 0 - Key n-1 via a second pull-down transistor, such as key NMOS transistor 602.
  • the pull-down transistors are connected in parallel.
  • the content of the mask cells Mask 0 - Mask n-1 is illustrated in an expanded mask cell 622.
  • the mask cells Mask 0 - Mask n-1 are SRAM cells including a mask bit M, a mask bit bar M#, a mask word line WLM, a mask bit line BLM, and a mask bit line bar BLM#.
  • the content of the key cells Key 0 - Key n-1 is illustrated in an expanded key bit cell 620.
  • the key cells Key 0 - Key n-1 are SRAM cells with XNOR logic.
  • the key cells Key 0 - Key n-1 further include a search line SL, a search line bar SL#, a key bit line BLK, a key bit line bar BLK#, a key bit K, a key bit bar K#, a key write line WLK, and an output line XNOR.
  • the first PMOS transistor 612 and second PMOS transistor 614 are connected in series and may be referred to as a serial PMOS transistors.
  • each cell pair e.g., one mask cell and one key cell
  • parallel NMOS transistors e.g., key NMOS transistor 602 and mask NMOS transistor 604
  • serial PMOS transistors e.g., first PMOS transistor 612 and second PMOS transistor 614.
  • TABLE 3 shows a truth table for the static NAND according to an aspect of the present disclosure.
  • M State Mask Bit
  • K Key Bit
  • Search Line SL
  • the static NAND TCAM is a serial operation because a current intermediate match line, such as ML i , may only be pulled low when all of the intermediate match lines to the left of the current intermediate match line evaluate low to indicate a match.
  • the subsequent intermediate match line ML i+1 may only be pulled low if the current intermediate match line ML i evaluates low. That is, if one intermediate match line indicates a mismatch, the subsequent match lines (the intermediate match lines to the right of the one intermediate match line) are not pulled low. More specifically, a subsequent intermediate match line, such as ML i+1 , may only be pulled low when the all of the previous intermediate match lines evaluate low to indicate a match.
  • the match line output ML NAND is connected to the serial PMOS transistors (e.g., first PMOS transistor 612 and second PMOS transistor 614), the ML NAND value is not a float value when there is a mismatch, rather, the serial PMOS transistors pull the match line output ML NAND high to indicate the mismatch.
  • the intermediate match lines are serially connected and the state of the match line output ML NAND is not known until all the match lines are evaluated or until a mismatch is determined. Therefore, as shown in TABLE 3, in cases when the output is not yet known, the match line output ML NAND will be either 0/1 when a mismatch has not yet been determined.
  • a propagation from a current intermediate match line ML i to a subsequent intermediate match line ML i+1 may activate (ON) when either the XNOR is 1 or the mask bit (M) is 0. That is, when the XNOR is 1, a key NMOS transistor 602 is activated and pulls the current intermediate match line ML i low to indicate a match. Alternatively, when the mask bit (M) is 0, the mask bit bar (M#) of the mask cell will be 1 and a mask NMOS transistor 604 is activated and pulls the current intermediate match line ML i low to indicate a match.
  • the state of the other variables is X because the current intermediate will pull low to indicate a match regardless of the other values, such as the State, the Key Bit, and the Search Line. More specifically, the state of X refers to a mask state in which there is neither a match nor a mismatch, rather, there is no comparison between the value of the search line and the values key cell.
  • a mismatch is indicated when the XNOR is 0 and the mask bit (M) is 1.
  • the mask bit bar (M#) is 0 when the mask bit is 1 and vice versa. That is, when XNOR is 0 the XNOR line (XNOR 0 -XNOR n-1 ) is also 0.
  • the mask bit bar is 0 (e.g., mask bit is 1)
  • the mask bit bar line is 0.
  • the first PMOS transistor 612 and second PMOS transistor 614 are enabled and set the match line output (ML NAND ) to high.
  • a mismatch is indicated when the match line is high.
  • the state refers to the state of a storage element (key cell and mask cell).
  • the state is 0 when the key cell has a value of 0; the state is 1 when the key cell has a value of 1; and the state is X when the mask cell is 0. That is, for the state of X, when the mask cell is 0, the mask NMOS transistor 604 is enabled and pulls the intermediate match line to low regardless of the XNOR value.
  • TABLE 4 illustrates a truth table for a static NAND TCAM. It should be noted that the state in TABLE 4 refers to the state of a storage element (the combination of a key bit cell and a mask bit cell). The state is 0 when the key cell has a value of 0, the state is 1 when the key cell and mask cell have a value of 1, and the state is X when the key cell is in state X. The state of X refers to a mask state in which there is neither a match nor a mismatch. Rather, there is no comparison between the value of the search line and the values of the key cell. Thus, the match line always indicate a match.
  • M State Mask Bit
  • K Key Value
  • TABLE 1 pseudo-NOR TCAM truth table
  • TABLE 4 static NAND TCAM truth table
  • FIGURE 7A and FIGURE 7B illustrate a hybrid TCAM 700 according to aspects of the present disclosure.
  • the hybrid TCAM 700 includes a static NAND TCAM 770, an interface unit 710, and a pseudo-NOR TCAM 780.
  • the static NAND TCAM 770 is a symbolic representation of a static NAND TCAM, specifically, the static NAND TCAM 770 of FIGURES 7A and 7B is a logical representation of the static NAND TCAM 600 of FIGURE 6 .
  • the first value (M) of a TCAM is compared via the static NAND TCAM 770. Furthermore, the remaining values (N-M) are compared at the pseudo-NOR TCAM 780.
  • the interface unit 710 is specified to interface the static NAND TCAM 770 with the pseudo-NOR TCAM 780.
  • the static NAND TCAM 770 may be referred to as a static NAND stage
  • the pseudo-NOR TCAM 780 may be referred to as a pseudo-NOR stage.
  • matches consume more power than mismatches. That is, mismatches consume little to no power.
  • a mismatch shuts off the PMOS stack of a subsequent pseudo-NOR TCAM stage and hence consumes no power. Still, when the PMOS stack of a pseudo-NOR TCAM stage is active, mismatches consume more power than matches.
  • LPM longest prefix match
  • the TCAM power may be divided into two categories.
  • the first category may be the match line power. Most values are screened in the first M values at the static NAND. Thus, when there is a mismatch, the comparison operation is discontinued for the subsequent (N-M) pseudo-NOR stages, and therefore, the match line power may be reduced.
  • the second category may be the search line power.
  • the static NAND search lines consume more power than the pseudo-NOR search lines. Because only M values are compared at the static NAND stage, the remaining values (N-M) are compared at the pseudo-NOR stage, and therefore, the overall search line power consumption is reduced.
  • the pseudo-NOR TCAM is faster in comparison to the static NAND TCAM.
  • the hybrid TCAM uses (N-M) bits in the pseudo-NOR TCAM.
  • the number of M bits is within a threshold so that the number of (N-M) bits is sufficiently greater than the number of M bits.
  • an interface unit 710 is specified to interface the static NAND stage 770 with the pseudo-NOR stage 780.
  • the interface unit 710 provides the output of the static NAND stage 770 to an input of the pseudo-NOR stage 780.
  • the interface unit 710 may be a flip-flop gate receiving the match line output 702 of the static NAND stage 770.
  • the interface unit 710 may also receive a clock input CLK.
  • the interface unit 710 outputs a match line NAND bit ML NAND to the pseudo-NOR stage 780.
  • the pseudo-NOR stage 780 receives the match line NAND bit ML NAND and the N-M values as inputs.
  • the pseudo-NOR stage 780 outputs a match line output 704 to an interface unit 710 and the interface unit output the match line NOR ML NOR .
  • the static NAND stage 770 and the pseudo-NOR stage 780 receive mask bits and key bits in parallel.
  • the input bits (DATA IN ) may be based on the truth table (TABLE 4) for the static NAND stage 770. Because the truth table (TABLE 1) for the pseudo-NOR stage 780 is different from the truth table (TABLE 4) for the static NAND stage 770, an encoder/decoder is specified for the pseudo-NOR stage 780 so that the mask bits and key bits input via the DATA IN match the pseudo-NOR truth table (TABLE 1).
  • the encoding may be performed during a write operation to the pseudo-NOR or static NAND and the decoding may be performed during a read operation from the pseudo-NOR or static NAND.
  • the key value may be lost if it is originally masked. That is, as an example, for state 0 of a static NAND TCAM, the mask bit (M) is 1 and the key value (K) is 0. After encoding, the mask bit is 1 and the key value is 0. After decoding, the mask bit is 1 and the key value is 0. In this example, the key value was not lost.
  • the mask bit is 0 and the key value may be 0.
  • the key value is one and the mask bit is 1.
  • the key value is one and the mask bit is 0. Accordingly, in the process of encoding and decoding, the key value was lost. Still, because the key value is not used in a state of X, when the state is X, the key value may be lost during the encoding and decoding process without affecting the hybrid TCAM.
  • FIGURE 8 illustrates a block diagram of a method within a hybrid TCAM 800.
  • a first TCAM stage compares a first portion of a search word to a first portion of a stored word.
  • the output of the first TCAM stage is interfaced to an input of the second TCAM stage.
  • a second TCAM stage compares a second portion of the search word to a second portion of the stored word in a second TCAM stage when the first portion of the search word matches the first portion of the stored word.
  • FIGURE 9 shows an exemplary wireless communication system 900 in which an embodiment of the disclosure may be advantageously employed.
  • FIGURE 9 shows three remote units 920, 930, and 950 and two base stations 940. It will be recognized that wireless communication systems may have many more remote units and base stations.
  • Remote units 920, 930, and 950 include multi-core processors with a hybrid TCAM 925A, 925B, and 925C.
  • FIGURE 9 shows forward link signals 980 from the base stations 940 and the remote units 920, 930, and 950 and reverse link signals 990 from the remote units 920, 930, and 950 to base stations 940.
  • the remote unit 920 is shown as a mobile telephone
  • remote unit 930 is shown as a portable computer
  • remote unit 950 is shown as a fixed location remote unit in a wireless local loop system.
  • the remote units may be cell phones, hand-held personal communication systems (PCS) units, a set top box, a music player, a video player, an entertainment unit, a navigation device, portable data units, such as personal data assistants, or fixed location data units such as meter reading equipment.
  • FIGURE 9 illustrates remote units, which may employ multi-core processors with a hybrid TCAM 925A, 925B, and 925C according to the teachings of the disclosure, the disclosure is not limited to these exemplary illustrated units. For instance, multi-core processors with a hybrid TCAM according to aspects of the present disclosure may be suitably employed in any device.
  • FIGURE 10 is a block diagram illustrating a design workstation used for circuit, layout, and logic design of a semiconductor component, such as the multi-core processor with a hybrid TCAM disclosed above.
  • a design workstation 1000 includes a hard disk 1001 containing operating system software, support files, and design software such as Cadence or OrCAD.
  • the design workstation 1000 also includes a display 1002 to facilitate design of a circuit 1010 or a semiconductor component 1012 such as a hybrid TCAM.
  • a storage medium 1004 is provided for tangibly storing the circuit design 1010 or the semiconductor component 1012.
  • the circuit design 1010 or the semiconductor component 1012 may be stored on the storage medium 1004 in a file format such as GDSII or GERBER.
  • the storage medium 1004 may be a CD-ROM, DVD, hard disk, flash memory, or other appropriate device.
  • the design workstation 1000 includes a drive apparatus 1003 for accepting input from or writing output to the storage medium 1004.
  • Data recorded on the storage medium 1004 may specify logic circuit configurations, pattern data for photolithography masks, or mask pattern data for serial write tools such as electron beam lithography.
  • the data may further include logic verification data such as timing diagrams or net circuits associated with logic simulations.
  • Providing data on the storage medium 1004 facilitates the design of the circuit design 1010 or the semiconductor component 1012 by decreasing the number of processes for designing semiconductor wafers.
  • the TCAM includes comparing means.
  • the comparing means may be the static NAND TCAM stage 770 and/or the pseudo NOR TCAM 780 configured to perform the functions recited by the comparing means.
  • the TCAM also includes an interface means, the interface means may be the interface unit 710 configured to perform the functions recited by the interface means.
  • the TCAM also includes an encoding means and a decoding means. The encoding means and the decoding means may be the encoder/decoder 720 configured to perform the functions recited by the encoding means and the decoding means.
  • the methodologies described herein may be implemented by various means depending upon the application. For example, these methodologies may be implemented in hardware, firmware, software, or any combination thereof.
  • the processing units may be implemented within one or more application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), digital signal processors (DSPs), digital signal processing devices (DSPDs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), processors, controllers, micro-controllers, microprocessors, electronic devices, other electronic units designed to perform the functions described herein, or a combination thereof.
  • ASICs application specific integrated circuits
  • DSPs digital signal processors
  • DSPDs digital signal processing devices
  • PLDs programmable logic devices
  • FPGAs field programmable gate arrays
  • processors controllers, micro-controllers, microprocessors, electronic devices, other electronic units designed to perform the functions described herein, or a combination thereof.
  • the methodologies may be implemented with modules (e.g., procedures, functions, and so on) that perform the functions described herein.
  • Any machine or computer readable medium tangibly embodying instructions may be used in implementing the methodologies described herein.
  • software code may be stored in a memory and executed by a processor. When executed by the processor, the executing software code generates the operational environment that implements the various methodologies and functionalities of the different aspects of the teachings presented herein.
  • Memory may be implemented within the processor or external to the processor.
  • the term "memory" refers to any type of long term, short term, volatile, nonvolatile, or other memory and is not to be limited to any particular type of memory or number of memories, or type of media upon which memory is stored.
  • the machine or computer readable medium that stores the software code defining the methodologies and functions described herein includes physical computer storage media.
  • a storage medium may be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer.
  • such computer-readable media can comprise RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer.
  • disk and/or disc includes compact disc (CD), laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk and blu-ray disc where disks usually reproduce data magnetically, while discs reproduce data optically with lasers. Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope of computer readable media.
  • instructions and/or data may be provided as signals on transmission media included in a communication apparatus.
  • a communication apparatus may include a transceiver having signals indicative of instructions and data. The instructions and data are configured to cause one or more processors to implement the functions outlined in the claims.

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  • Static Random-Access Memory (AREA)
  • Logic Circuits (AREA)
EP13818159.9A 2012-12-28 2013-12-20 Hybrid ternary content addressable memory Not-in-force EP2939241B1 (en)

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US13/730,487 US8934278B2 (en) 2012-12-28 2012-12-28 Hybrid ternary content addressable memory
PCT/US2013/076853 WO2014105684A1 (en) 2012-12-28 2013-12-20 Hybrid ternary content addressable memory

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EP (1) EP2939241B1 (zh)
JP (1) JP5932167B2 (zh)
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KR20150095941A (ko) 2015-08-21
TW201440053A (zh) 2014-10-16
JP5932167B2 (ja) 2016-06-08
CN104823243B (zh) 2017-11-14
WO2014105684A1 (en) 2014-07-03
EP2939241A1 (en) 2015-11-04
TWI508074B (zh) 2015-11-11
JP2016502226A (ja) 2016-01-21
US8934278B2 (en) 2015-01-13
CN104823243A (zh) 2015-08-05
KR101585037B1 (ko) 2016-01-13
US20140185348A1 (en) 2014-07-03

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